Arunachal Pradesh police on Thursday appealed to the proscribed Ulfa (Independent) to release the two employees of a private oil company kidnapped from the frontier state “unharmed” because it has “nothing” to do with the outfit or its demands.

The appeal by director-general of police R.P. Upadhyaya was made after Ulfa (I) gave a February 16 deadline to the company to secure the release of its employees — Pranab Kumar Gogoi, 51, from Assam and Ram Kumar, 31, from Bihar — failing which they threatened to take “necessary action” against Kumar.

The outfit, whose stated goal is “sovereignty” for Assam, has reportedly sought Rs 20 crore for the duo’s release.

They were kidnapped by a joint group of suspected Ulfa (I) and NSCN (K) rebels on December 21 from Diyun in Changlang, one of the remotest and underdeveloped districts of Arunachal Pradesh bordering Myanmar and Assam.

Upadhyaya told The Telegraph that he has also heard about the outfit’s deadline. “Our request to the organisation is to release both the employees as a goodwill gesture,” he said.

He also said that it was their request to the Ulfa (I) “not to disturb” anyone from Arunachal Pradesh — either natives or those working in the frontier state.

“Arunachal has nothing to do with Ulfa (I) or its demands. Their demands are known to the Assam government. Therefore, release the kidnapped duo and also don’t force the company to pay ransom as a goodwill gesture,” Upadhaya said.

Gogoi, a drilling superintendent, and Kumar, a radio operator, are employees of the Quippo Oil and Gas Infrastructure Limited, one of the “country’s leading and fastest growing drilling services contractors”. Quippo has its corporate office in Gurgaon and has been engaged by Oil India Limited for drilling activities in the Kharsang area of Changlang district.

The outfit had on January 12 also warned that Kumar may face harm if the company failed to pay the amount for “exploiting” the natural resources of Assam and the Northeast. Kumar hails from Khagaria district in Bihar.

This was followed by videos purportedly released by the outfit on January 20 where the two employees pleaded with their respective state governments — Assam and Bihar — to secure their safe release.

The videos showed Kumar urging Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar in Hindi to take up the matter with his Assam counterpart Sarbananda Sonowal for his safe return. He said he was a “victim of conflict” between his company and the militant outfits and he has been in the custody of NSCN and Ulfa (I) for a month. The NSCN (K) is said to be active in the Changlang area.

In a separate video, Gogoi, who hails from Upper Assam’s Sivasagar district, made a similar appeal to Sonowal in Assamese. He also appealed to his employers and the company to secure his release.

Changlang deputy commissioner Devansh Yadav told this newspaper on Thursday that efforts were on to secure the safe release of the duo and he was “hopeful of a breakthrough” soon.

Changlang is one of the three districts where the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act was extended for another six months on October 1, giving the forces ample powers to carry out counter-insurgency operations in such “disturbed” areas.

A senior Assam government official said Sonowal has taken up the issue with the Arunachal Pradesh government.